相关论文: Gravitation and the Problem of Quantum Measurement

The quantum measurement problem and various unsuccessful attempts to resolve it are reviewed. A suggestion by Diosi and Penrose for the half life of the quantum superposition of two Newtonian gravitational fields is generalized to an…

The measurement problem in quantum mechanics is almost exclusively discussed in situations where gravity is ignored. We discuss some recent developments in our understanding of quantum gravity and argue that they significantly alter the…

By taking into account both quantum mechanical and general relativistic effects, I derive an equation that describes some limitations on the measurability of space-time distances. I then discuss possible features of quantum gravity which…

I review the arguments most often raised against a fundamental coupling of classical spacetime to quantum matter. I show that an experiment by Page and Geilker does not exclude such a semiclassical theory but mandates an inclusion of an…

A discussion of the meaning of a physical concept cannot be separated from discussion of the conditions for its ideal measurement. We assert that quantization is no more than the invocation of the quantum of action in the explanation of…

In view of the enormous difficulties we seem to face in quantizing general relativity, we should perhaps consider the possibility that gravity is a fundamentally classical interaction. Theoretical arguments against such mixed…

We propose partial measurements as a conceptual tool to understand how to operate with counterfactual claims in quantum physics. Indeed, unlike standard von Neumann measurements, partial measurements can be reversed probabilistically. We…

Semi-classical gravity attempts to define a hybrid theory in which a classical gravitational field is coupled to a unitarily evolving quantum state. Although semi-classical gravity is inconsistent with observation, a viable theory of this…

Although general relativity is a predictively successful theory, it treats matter as classical rather than as quantum. For this reason, it will have to be replaced by a more fundamental quantum theory of gravity. Attempts to formulate a…

The conceptual problems in quantum mechanics -- related to the collapse of the wave function, the particle-wave duality, the meaning of measurement -- arise from the need to ascribe particle character to the wave function. As will be shown,…

In this article we propose a solution to the measurement problem in quantum mechanics. We point out that the measurement problem can be traced to an a priori notion of classicality in the formulation of quantum mechanics. If this notion of…

A new, realist interpretation of the quantum measurement processes is given. In this scenario a quantum measurement is a non-equilibrium phase transition in a ``resonant cavity'' formed by the entire physical universe including all its…

This essay argues that when measurement processes involve energies of the order of the Planck scale, the fundamental assumption of locality may no longer be a good approximation. Idealized position measurements of two distinguishable…

I give a pedagogical explanation of what it is about quantization that makes general relativity go from being a nearly perfect classical theory to a very problematic quantum one. I also explain why some quantization of gravity is…

In this work we analyze the deep link between the 20th Century positivist re-foundation of physics and the famous measurement problem of quantum mechanics. We attempt to show why this is not an "obvious" nor "self evident" problem for the…

The locality problem of quantum measurements is considered in the framework of the algebraic approach. It is shown that contrary to the currently widespread opinion one can reconcile the mathematical formalism of the quantum theory with the…

An attempt is made to go beyond the standard semi-classical approximation for gravity in the Born-Oppenheimer decomposition of the wave-function in minisuperspace. New terms are included which correspond to quantum gravitational…

Quantum Mechanics is revisited as the appropriate theoretical framework for the description of the outcome of experiments that rely on the use of classical devices. In particular, it is emphasized that the limitations on the measurability…

The search for a quantum theory of gravity has been one of the main aims of theoretical physics for many years by now. However the efforts in this direction have been often hampered by the lack of experimental/observational tests able to…

One of the great challenges for 21st century physics is to quantize gravity and generate a theory that will unify gravity with the other three fundamental forces of nature. This paper takes the (heretical) point of view that gravity may be…